Sports Gossip: The Monday Morning Couch Potatoes

Fellas, the "Monday Morning Couch Potatoes" feel your pain. We understand that sometimes in life, you have to make sacrifices. We've all been there before. Spent Saturday night watching Prime with the lady instead of at the bar with the boys? Picked the kids up from the dance recital instead of watching the big game? It's okay. It happens. That's where we come in.

At the start of every week, the "Monday Morning Couch Potatoes" (Peter Schrager and Adam Weinberg) will fill you in on the important things you missed while trying to pretend like you really care about all the other stuff in your life. Each Monday, you will wake up with an up-to-date summary of all the vital (and worthless) things you might have missed in the past week of sports and entertainment.

These are the six stories that sparked our interest the most during the past week of sports, pop culture and entertainment. This article, and every one of its biweekly successors, will serve as a "cheat sheet" for the various conversations you will have with coworkers and friends over the upcoming week.

So get educated, then hit up the water cooler for some conversation with the boys from accounts receivable.

Water Cooler Topic #1:

The 'Canes are stormingThe surprise of the first month in the NHL season has been the first-place Carolina Hurricanes. A low-budget team that was quiet in the first post-lockout free agency market, the Hurricanes have suddenly become an offensive powerhouse. The team came from behind seven times in six of their early games, including in wins over elite conference teams such as Ottawa and Philadelphia. This ability to come back and an exciting young roster might finally get the Hurricanes some notice in Carolina.

Adam's take: The Carolina Hurricanes have really developed a knack for coming back in games this season. In five of their last six contests in October, the Hurricanes were down by at least two goals, yet they managed to go 5-0-1 during that stretch. That speaks volumes about a team built on character players like Rod Brind'Amour, Cory Stillman, Ray Whitney, and a bevy of young talent. These 'Canes have a thing that is often overlooked in sports today, and that is heart... and a giant pig mascot named Stormy. I cannot stress enough the effect that a random and misplaced mascot has on a crowd. If the Houston Texans trotted out a massive Rooster mascot, that would be worth an extra two wins this year, minimum. Trust me on this one.

Peter's take: Eric Staal comes from the town of Thunder Bay, Ontario. That has to be the coolest birthplace in the world. He's also a 21-year-old on pace to score 50 goals. That's Teemu Selanne-esque. Who needs Andrew Bogut, Huston Street or Cadillac Williams? Eric "Gunner" Staal is my pick for Sports Rookie of the Year.

Water Cooler Topic #2:

The Warriors put up a golden fightThe Golden State Warriors finished last season with an 18-10 record in their last 28 games. Since Baron Davis joined the squad, the team averaged 10 more points per game than beforehand. With the Pacific Division up for grabs, many experts have chosen the Northern California franchise to make a run at the playoffs in 2005-2006.

Adam's take: You would think that after 11 straight losing seasons, even this team is due for a run by now. This team will go as far as a healthy B-Diddy can take them. Health isn't exactly Baron's strong point, and neither is passing the ball. With two shoot-first guards in himself and Jason Richardson, someone is going to need to share the ball. Maybe it's the fact that I'm biased against that tool Mike Dunleavy, but I'm not ready to announce that the Warriors are Golden just yet.

Peter's take: I'm on this Warriors bandwagon this season. With no player older than 26 on the roster, they're young, athletic and physical. Jason Richardson and Baron Davis make up the best NBA backcourt outside of San Antonio, Troy Murphy and Mike Dunleavy are the most magical pair of white guys since Siegfried & Roy, and Christ Taft and Adonal Foyle are... well... both seven feet. With a weaker Pacific Division than usual, the Warriors could be playing some postseason basketball come May.